Telangana becomes third state to start caste survey

The Telangana government has initiated the process of a comprehensive household caste survey in the state aimed at targeted and equitable resource distribution among all communities. With this, Telangana will become the third state to hold such a caste-based headcount after Andhra Pradesh and Bihar.
Orders for the same were issued by the state chief secretary Santhi Kumari on Friday, which said that the survey would be conducted door-to-door. The caste survey was among the guarantees promised by the ruling Congress in the run-up to the assembly elections last year.
The chief secretary, in the order seen by HT, directed that the survey be completed within 60 days, adding that the planning department has been designated as the nodal department to conduct the survey.
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“The survey is aimed at planning and implementing various opportunities — including socio, economic, employment, educational and political — for the amelioration of OBCs, SCs and STs and other weaker sections of the state,” the order said.
The Telangana cabinet on February 4 decided to conduct the survey and a resolution to this effect was passed by the state assembly on February 16.
Tabling the resolution at the time, state backward classes welfare minister Ponnam Prabhakar said that the survey would gather caste data for targeted welfare and equitable resource distribution. “Through this survey it is expected that justice will be done to SC, ST, BC and other weaker sections in the state,” he said.
The government has also appointed a commission headed by former high court judge justice Shameem Akhtar to study sub-classification of Scheduled Castes for extending reservation benefits in education and employment.
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The Bihar caste survey – the first in independent India to successfully enumerate all castes – last year found that OBCs comprise 63.13% of the state, SCs formed 19.65% and STs 1.68%. “Upper” castes were found to be 15.52% of the population.
Subsequently, the Bihar government hiked reservations to 75% in government jobs and education. Challenges to the survey are pending before the Supreme Court.
On January 19, the Andhra Pradesh government kickstarted an exercise aimed at creating a comprehensive database of people based on their castes.
A separate order, issued by the Telangana SC development department on Friday, said that sub-classification within SCs for reservations was necessitated after an August 11 order of a seven-judge Supreme Court bench said that the states can sub-classify SCs and STs for the purpose of reservations.
The state government constituted a six-member committee headed by state irrigation minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy as the chairman to study the top court observation and make recommendations regarding the way forward.
The committee recommended appointment of a Commission of Inquiry for sub-classification within SC reserved categories.
The government order issued on Friday said since the subject matter is of public importance, the commission will undertake a rationale sub-classification and grouping together of the homogeneous sub-castes of SCs in the state by adopting a scientific methodology and by considering the available contemporaneous data and census.
The commission will also conduct empirical studies to identify inter-see backwardness within various sub-groups of SCs in the state by focussing on inadequacy of representation in the services and admissions to educational institutions, the order said.
The commission will examine various facets of the social, economic, political and educational backwardness among various sub-groups and identify the manner of effective implementation of sub-classification in terms of the Supreme Court observation.
The commission will submit a report to the government within 60 days from the date of assumption of charge. It will hold meetings in Hyderabad or at any other place as it considers necessary, the order said.